Health-related Quality of Life in children and adolescents treated for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL), compared with healthy peers: a longitudinal study of early survivorship.

Purpose: Survival for childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL) has surpassed 90%, making quality of survival an important endpoint in treatment outcomes. This study examined health-related quality of life (HRQoL) trajectories in early survivorship for patients post-ALL treatment compared with a matched group of healthy peers, and explored the association of individual factors (age, sex) and treatment intensity with HRQoL outcomes.

Methods: Eighty-three paediatric patients aged 4-16 years who recently completed treatment for ALL were recruited to the study, alongside 53 age- and sex-matched healthy children.

Viral Conjunctivitis Rates Unchanged Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic in an Ophthalmology Clinic.

Background: Millions of acute conjunctivitis cases occur in the United States annually. The impact of COVID-19 mitigation practices on viral conjunctivitis incidence within ophthalmology clinics has not been reported. We hypothesized that viral conjunctivitis rates would decrease with implementation of such practices.

The Australian New Zealand Consortium in Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults Oncofertility action plan.

International and national oncofertility networks, including the US-led Oncofertility Consortium, FertiProtekt, and the Danish Network, have played pivotal roles in advancing the discipline of oncofertility over the last decade. Many other countries lack a shared approach to pediatric oncofertility health service delivery. This study aims to describe baseline oncofertility practices at Australian New Zealand Children's Haematology/Oncology Group centers in 2019-2021, describe binational priorities for care, and propose a 5-year action plan for best practice to be implemented by the newly formed Australian New Zealand Consortium in Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults (CAYA) Oncofertility (ANZCO).

Ligand-dependent hedgehog signaling maintains an undifferentiated, malignant osteosarcoma phenotype.

TP53 and RB1 loss-of-function mutations are common in osteosarcoma. During development, combined loss of TP53 and RB1 function leads to downregulation of autophagy and the aberrant formation of primary cilia, cellular organelles essential for the transmission of canonical Hedgehog (Hh) signaling. Excess cilia formation then leads to hypersensitivity to Hedgehog (Hh) ligand signaling.

Feasibility of a prospective physiotherapy model of care during the intense treatment phase of childhood cancer (FITChild): A mixed methods design.

Background: Children diagnosed with cancer often develop significant physical treatment-related side effects. This study evaluated the feasibility of a targeted, proactive, individualised physiotherapy intervention programme for children with a recent cancer diagnosis.

Procedure: This feasibility study was a single-group mixed methods study, consisting of pre- and post-intervention assessment, followed by a survey and interviews of parents.

Central Endocrine Complications Among Childhood Cancer Survivors Treated With Radiation Therapy: A PENTEC Comprehensive Review.

Purpose: Children who receive cranial radiation therapy (RT) as a component of treatment for malignancy are often at risk of long-term central endocrine toxicity secondary to radiation to the hypothalamic-pituitary axis (HPA). A comprehensive analysis was performed of central endocrine late effects in survivors of childhood cancer treated with RT as part of the Pediatric Normal Tissue Effects in the Clinic (PENTEC) consortium.

Methods And Materials: A systematic review of the risk of RT-related central endocrine effects was performed in accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA).

Generation and multi-dimensional profiling of a childhood cancer cell line atlas defines new therapeutic opportunities.

Pediatric solid and central nervous system tumors are the leading cause of cancer-related death among children. Identifying new targeted therapies necessitates the use of pediatric cancer models that faithfully recapitulate the patient's disease. However, the generation and characterization of pediatric cancer models has significantly lagged behind adult cancers, underscoring the urgent need to develop pediatric-focused cell line resources.

Prospective longitudinal evaluation of treatment-related toxicity and health-related quality of life during the first year of treatment for pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Background: Pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) therapy is accompanied by treatment-related toxicities (TRTs) and impaired quality of life. In Australia and New Zealand, children with ALL are treated with either Children's Oncology Group (COG) or international Berlin-Frankfurt-Munster (iBFM) Study Group-based therapy. We conducted a prospective registry study to document symptomatic TRTs (venous thrombosis, neurotoxicity, pancreatitis and bone toxicity), compare TRT outcomes to retrospective TRT data, and measure the impact of TRTs on children's general and cancer-related health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and parents' emotional well-being.

Ganglion Cell Layer Thickness Variance Using SPECTRALIS Optical Coherence Tomography.

Background: To determine the normal variance of the mean macular ganglion cell layer (GCL) volume among subjects without significant ocular pathology using SPECTRALIS optical coherence tomography (OCT).

Methods: Fifty subjects underwent a baseline scan using SPECTRALIS OCT followed by 2 more studies with (reg-ON) and without (reg-OFF) eye registration all taken at the same session. The mean GCL volume was measured using built-in SPECTRALIS software.

COVID-19 vaccination in children and adolescents aged 5 years and older undergoing treatment for cancer and non-malignant haematological conditions: Australian and New Zealand Children's Haematology/Oncology Group consensus statement.

Introduction: The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation and New Zealand Ministry of Health recommend all children aged ≥ 5 years receive either of the two mRNA COVID-19 vaccines: Comirnaty (Pfizer), available in both Australia and New Zealand, or Spikevax (Moderna), available in Australia only. Both vaccines are efficacious and safe in the general population, including children. Children and adolescents undergoing treatment for cancer and immunosuppressive therapy for non-malignant haematological conditions are particularly vulnerable, with an increased risk of severe or fatal COVID-19.

Behavioral and Emotional Functioning of Children and Adolescents at the End of Treatment for Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Compared to Healthy Peers.

This study describes the behavioral and emotional adjustment of 77 children and adolescents 3 months post-treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), compared to 52 age and sex-matched healthy peers. Parents, teachers, and self-report ratings on the Behavioral Assessment System for Children, Second Edition (BASC-2) were utilized to measure psychological function. While overall mean scores were in the average range for both groups, parents and teachers rated patients higher on behavior symptoms, internalizing problems and adaptive skill difficulties.

Paroxysmal Cold Hemoglobinuria: Diagnosis From the Blood Smear.

Phagocytosis of red cells by neutrophils, referred to as neutrophil erythrophagocytosis, on the blood smear as a helpful diagnostic sign of paroxysmal cold hemoglobinuria is underrecognized. We present a child with paroxysmal cold hemoglobinuria and prominent neutrophil erythrophagocytosis to highlight the importance of this finding in the diagnosis of paroxysmal cold hemoglobinuria.

Protocol for SARS-CoV-2 post-vaccine surveillance study in Australian adults and children with cancer: an observational study of safety and serological and immunological response to SARS-CoV-2 vaccination (SerOzNET).

Background: Cancer is associated with excess morbidity and mortality from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) following infection by the novel pandemic coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. Vaccinations against SARS-CoV-2 have been rapidly developed and proved highly effective in reducing the incidence of severe COVID-19 in clinical trials of healthy populations. However, patients with cancer were excluded from pivotal clinical trials.

Atypical Teratoid Rhabdoid Tumours Are Susceptible to Panobinostat-Mediated Differentiation Therapy.

Atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumour (ATRT) is a rare but highly aggressive undifferentiated solid tumour arising in the central nervous system and predominantly affecting infants and young children. ATRT is exclusively characterized by the inactivation of , a member of the SWI/SNF chromatin remodelling complex that is essential for the regulation of large sets of genes required for normal development and differentiation. Histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi) are a promising anticancer therapy and are able to mimic the normal acetylation functions of SMARCB1 in -deficient cells and drive multilineage differentiation in extracranial rhabdoid tumours.

Parental adjustment following their child's completion of acute lymphoblastic leukemia treatment.

Background: Few studies haveexamined parent and family adaptation in the early period following the end of childhood cancer treatment. We examined parent adjustment at the end of their child's treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

Methods: Parents of childhood cancer survivors (CCS), who were 3 months post-ALL treatment, and parents of typically developing children completed measures of psychological and family functioning.

Malignant Melanoma in Children and Adolescents Treated in Pediatric Oncology Centers: An Australian and New Zealand Children's Oncology Group (ANZCHOG) Study.

Objectives: Unlike adults, malignant melanoma in children and adolescents is rare. In adult melanoma, significant progress in understanding tumor biology and new treatments, including targeted therapies and immunotherapy have markedly improved overall survival. In sharp contrast, there is a paucity of data on the biology and clinical behavior of pediatric melanoma.

Clinical Characteristics of Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension in Patients Over 50 Years of Age: A multicenter clinical cohort study.

Purpose: To characterize the clinical features of idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) in patients >50 years of age compared to the typical IIH population and existing data for this older cohort.

Design: Retrospective, clinical cohort study.

Methods: Medical records of 65 patients >50 years of age at first diagnosis of IIH were reviewed based on the Modified Dandy Criteria from 4 academic centers.

The Australia and New Zealand Cardio-Oncology Registry: evaluation of chemotherapy-related cardiotoxicity in a national cohort of paediatric cancer patients.

Cancer therapy related cardiac dysfunction (CTRCD) is an area of increasing focus, particularly during the survivorship period, for paediatric, adolescent and adult cancer survivors. With the advent of immunotherapy and targeted therapy, there is a new set of mechanisms from which paediatric and young adult patients with cancer may suffer cardiovascular injury. Furthermore, cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the survivorship period.

Childhood cancer survivorship: barriers and preferences.

Objective: Many survivors are disengaged from follow-up, mandating alternative models of survivorship-focused care for late effects surveillance. We explored survivors' barriers to accessing, and preferences for survivorship care.

Methods: We invited Australian and New Zealand survivors of childhood cancer from three age groups: <16 years (represented by parents), 16-25 years (adolescent and young adults (AYAs)) and >25 years ('older survivors').

Satisfaction, disappointment and regret surrounding fertility preservation decisions in the paediatric and adolescent cancer population.

Purpose: With over 80% of paediatric and adolescent cancer patients surviving into adulthood, quality-of-life issues such as future fertility are increasingly important. However, little is known about regret around decisions to pursue or forgo fertility preservation (FP). We investigated the risk of decision regret in families involved in making a FP decision and explored contributive factors.

Health-related quality of life in paediatric patients up to five years post-treatment completion for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia: a systematic review.

Purpose: Despite survival rates greater than 90%, treatment for paediatric acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) remains challenging for families. The early post-treatment phase is an especially unique time of adjustment. The primary aim of this review was to identify and synthesise research on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) for patients up to five years post-treatment.